Andale vs. eBay

If you’re anything like me, you want to make sure you are spending only “what” you have to spend, “when” you have to spend it. And then, you want to make sure that you’re spending wisely; no duplications; no poorly invested money. After all, an investment is something you expect to receive a return on.

So in a brief reading of the above information of the eBay tools and the Andale tools, you may be wondering where to spend you money. And remember, the monthly eBay Hot Items report is free, eBay’s search engine provides good information for free, Google’s new AdWords Tool and Overture also provide us with detailed popularity information, so why spend money on any tools at all? Good question! There are times when skimping is wise, but where your business is concerned, skimping in certain areas can be anywhere from fatal to just a plain waste of time. So before we move on, let’s take a look at the differences in the four products (Andale What’s Hot, eBay’s What’s Hot, Andale Research & eBay’s Marketplace Research Tool) and see if there is an advantage to spending a few bucks per month. Will they really provide usable information that can make the difference for your business?

Andale “What’s Hot” vs. eBay’s “What’s Hot Report”

Obviously Andale’s What’s Hot Tool provides much more capability than that of the standard eBay “What’s Hot" Report. For about $4 a month to get the additional features, there is not much risk. Unfortunately, to compare the Andale Research Tool (about $8 per month) to the eBay Marketplace Research Tool (equivalent comparison of $10 or $25 per month) is not as easy. Each tool is close in capability, with the current main difference appearing to be the amount of time that you can look back historically for the information you are interested in. Andale only provides about 30 days of historical data, while eBay provides 60 days worth of historical data for the 2 cheaper versions (Fast Pass & Basic) of the tool and a full 90 days worth of historical data for the Pro version. Both provide the same types of data and graphical reports with trend analysis. At a future time we may perform a more in-depth look at each of the products, however for now it is safe to say that either will provide you with a quality tool for your research. Here’s something to keep in mind though. The Product Details of the Andale What’s Hot tool are similar in capability as to what are provided with the Andale Research Tool and the eBay Marketplace Research Tool; i.e. you may not need both unless you want to see how a product stacks up against something in the What’s Hot category.